Bracket-arm.



P. P. KOBERT.

BRACKET ABM.

APPLIOA'PION FILED JAN. 31, 1913.

III/II INVENTOR Rank P; Kobert,

v BY

1,087,301, Patented Feb. 17, 1914.

srarns a rib FRANK P. KOBERT, 0F HAVEN, CONNECTICUT.

BRACKES-ARM.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FRANK I. Konnn'r, acitizen of the United States, and residing at New Haven, in the countyof New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Bracket-Anus, of which the following is aspecification, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to brackets and bracket arms for use as supportsfor electric cables in man holes and other places, and the objectthereof is to provide an improved device or devices of-this classinvolving an upright support and a bracket arm or arms adjustablyconnected therewith. the construction of the entire device and.especially of the bracket arms being such as to give said arms thegreatest possible strength in proportion to the'amountof material employed; and with these and other objects in view, the invention consistsin the construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafterdescribed and claimed Theinvention is fully disclosed in the followingspecification of which the accompanying drawing forms a part, in whichthe separate parts of my invention are designated by suitable referencecharacters in each of the views, and in which Figure 1 is a longitudinalcentral vertical section through a bracket arm made ac cording to myinvention and through the support thereof; Fig. 2 a horizontal sectionon the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 a plan view of a blank from which themain part of the bracket arm is made; Fig. & aview similar to Fig. 3,but showing theffirst step in the process of making the bracket arm fromthe blank shown in Fig. 3; Fig, 5 a side view of that part of thebracket arm shown in Fig. 4; Fig. 6 a view similar to Fig. 3, butshowing a blank from which a heel piece forming .part of *the bracketarm is made;

Fig. 7 a back and end view of said heel piece as formed read for usefrom the blank shown in Fig. 6; Fig. 8 a back or bottom-view. of thebracket arm complete, as

shown in Figs. 4 and 5, with the heel piece Specification of LettersPatent. Patented Feb; 1",? 1914 I Application filed January 31, 1913.Serial No. 745,330.

supporting bracket arms on which are placed electric cables, and inFigs. 1 and 2, I have shown at I) my improved bracket arm for thispurpose. The suppdrt a consists of a piece of channel-iron which, inpractice is secured in a vertical position to a suitable frame work orother support placed in a. manhole, and said channel-iron is provided atintervals with transverse slots oropenings c having downwardlydirectedextensions (1. of less transverse dimensions than the slots or openingsc and the bracket arm or arms b, any "les'ired number ofwhich may beemployed, are provided with heads 5 adapted to be passed backwardlythrough the slots or openings a and said heads are provided with necks 6adapted to be dropped downwardly into the extensions a of the slots oropenings a and by this means the bracket arm or arms Z) may be quicklyand easily connected with and detached.

tudinal groove c, this groove extends from the heel portion of the arm,or from adja cent to the head 11 of the central part of said arm to.within a predetermined distanoe from the free end thereof, as shown at 0and the heel portion 0 o' 'said groove is much'deeper than the restthereof, and the bottom of said groove tapers in depth from the heelportion 0 to the outer end portion t 'ereof or to the outer end portionof thearm, as'clearly shown in Fig. 1. In forming the groove 0 acorresponding rib c is formed on the bottom of the blank c and informing said groove and rib in the die mechanism, as hereinbeforedescribed, the sides of the stripe are contracted or drawn in, as shownat c in Fig. 4, and this contraction or drawing in of the sides of thesaid strip or blank extends from the head portion of the arm at c to theouter endof the groove-c at 0 I also provide the ,heel portion of thearm with a heel reinthat shown in Fig. 6, and formed by means of asuitable die device or mechanism, as shown in Fig. 7, said, blank beingbent into a U- shaped form "in cross section having side flanges (Z Theblank (Z from which the heel piece cl is formed is preferably the samein thickness as the blank 0, and when formed in the manner described,the said heel piece is placed on back of the heel portion of the arm I),as shown in Fig. 1. and as is also shown in Fig. 8, and is welded tosaid arm, after which the arm is placed in a finishing or shearing dieand sheared off along the la dh'tted lines :0 of Fig. 8, and so as toform the head 6 as clearly shown in Fig. 2.

When the heel piece has been applied, as shown and desribed, and the armconnected with the support a, said heel piece bears on said support anda bracket arm made as above described and as shown in the acof an inchthick and 10 incheslong will support over 200 lbs. at its outer end,andthis. is about four times as much as such' arms will support asusually constructed. It is also customary, in'practice, for work men, ingoing into and climbing out of manholes, to use the bracket arms thatsupport cables, andin this waysaid arms are frequently broken down, thuscausing great damage and frequently'causing injury to the workmen, butwith my improved bracket armor arms made, and supported in the mannerdescribed, such accidents or results are obviated. Of course, thestrength of the arm will depend upon the length there of and thethickness of the material employed in its construction, but the greatstrength of my improved bracket arm or arms-over other devices of thisclam as usually constructed, is the result of the tapered groove 0formed therein and the corresponding rib c on the back or bottom of thearm, it being also understood that the employment of the heel piece (Zalso adds materially to the strength of the arm and the strain on thefree end portion of the arm operates in the same manner as the strain onthe arch. My invention is not limited however, to the heel piece (Z norto the length thereof, but in all cases where the greatest possiblestrength is required in the arm, the heel piece (5 should be employed.It will be observed that the free end of the arm 6 is curvedupwardlyslightly, as shown at If, and this result is produced at thesame time that the groove and rib c are formed. 1

Havlng fully described my invention what I I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is A bracket arm of the class described the.

Vided with a heel piece which is welded to the bottom thereof and theform of which,

in cross section, is similar to the form of the heel portion of saidarm, said heel piece being adapted to bear on the support ,of said, armsubstantially as shown and do scribed.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed myname in presence of the subscribing witnesses this 30th day of January1913.

FRANK P. KO'BERT. Witnesses:

G. MULREANY, ANDRE S,

